Aiding and Abetting
by Rukoh
Summary: It seemed like the most unlikely partnership in the world- but the most exciting attractions are always between two opposites. Based on the episode Training Daze- following Butch and Cassidy's relationship/experiences, rather than Jessie and James's.
1. Chapter 1

**DISCONTINUED/ON HIATUS UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE.**

**Would *not* recommend reading this in it's current state. 8(**

* * *

She was finally here.

After months of impatience, waiting, readying herself and planning, she'd finally taken the very first step to achieving her dream. Here was her chance to actually _do_ something productive with her life- and it was, most likely, her_ last_ chance. She couldn't screw this up for herself. She'd never wanted something so bad in her whole life, and she'd _never_ felt more determined.

Cassidy had known about the notorious Team Rocket for quite a while. In fact, it was impossible _not_ to be aware of it when reportings of the organizations most recent robberies, scams and overall cruelty to Pokemon were constantly on the news and in the papers. Cassidy had secretly always admired Team Rocket. She would never confess to her older sister, whom she was living with at the time, but the whole criminal lifestyle seemed so wild, so exciting, so immoral and wonderfully wrong compared with the dull, mundane life she'd been leading up until most recently.

She lived an ordinary life in an ordinary house in an ordinary neighbourhood with her twenty-one year old, goody-two-shoes sister, Carla, who's endless nagging and complaining about her younger sisters increasingly shameful behaviour got plain_ tiring_. Admittedly, Cassidy didn't exactly define a 'good girl'. She'd stay out all hours at parties, getting completely wasted and then eventually arriving home at some ridiculous hour with a guy she'd picked up along the way, who always seemed to be far older than she was. It appeared she had no self-respect when it came to boyfriends, no shame in the things she did so frequently with all these boys. She was bright, though, and she'd graduated Pokemon Tech but, much to the frustration of her sister, she didn't pursue becoming a trainer. She was too busy partying, throwing her life down the drain. Not to mention her attitude had only gotten worse and worse as she'd grown up. She was full of herself. Unbelievably cocky and conceited- it wasn't just your average confidence, it was endless arrogance, and for a young girl she'd give off the most cruel and cutting remarks that were enough to shatter _anyone's_ self-esteem.

But she was putting up a front. The whole teen rebellion was something to hide behind. She could smile like she didn't have a care in the world, she could go to all these parties with her friends and drink herself stupid, she could get as many boys as she wanted...but was she happy? Not in the slightest. She wanted something more. She was sick and tired of the same old routine every day; she'd constantly oversleep because of her late night antics, then she'd go downstairs for a snack, back up to her room for a nap before she eventually got up and dressed into something ridiculously skimpy and heels she could barely walk in, ready for another night of partying that would almost _always_ end in disaster.

It was boring. Dull. Repetitive. Sure, she could quit the partying and do something sensible like get a decent job, or go into further education. But she didn't want that either. The thought of waking up every morning only to repeat the same old routine as every other day...it was utterly depressing.

So what was the solution? Team Rocket. _That _was her solution. She'd had to wait months after being added to the ever increasing waiting list of possible recruits, and then there had been endless forms and applications to fill out and send off, as well as the fact that Carla disapproved. Although, disapproved was an understatement; she'd told Cassidy straight that _anyone _who joined an evil organization such as Team Rocket was scum. Agents who worked there were the lowest of the low. Her little sister could do so much better, why was she throwing her life away like this?

Cassidy didn't listen. She didn't _care_. This wasn't about anyone else, it was about _her_ and what _she_ wanted. An if she wanted to join a crime syndicate? Hell, she'd do anything she could to achieve that desire.

So, here she was. Team Rocket Academy. It was early evening and the sun was setting by the time her cab dropped her off at the large campus hidden away in the mountains. She had a huge travel bag with her, fit-to-bust with all her clothes, cosmetics and other basics like toiletries and a purse. She hauled it over her shoulder before she got out of the car, legs a little achy and eyes heavy after such a long journey.

She payed the driver and shut the door behind her, and then he drove away, leaving her stranded in this place.

No. She wasn't 'stranded', she _wanted_ to be here. She'd wanted it so desperately for _so_ long, and she'd been awaiting this day in anticipation for what seemed like a lifetime...but now she was here it felt...odd. She was stood there at the side of the road, alone, staring at the huge building directly ahead. She suddenly felt an overwhelming sense of vulnerability, fear almost. Maybe it was her nerves- the feeling of her heart pounding in her chest. She was out of her comfort zone. This was so new and surreal, like she was dreaming.

But all she had to do was glance around to see that she couldn't possibly turn back now. This was it. Her new beginning. So she did what she always did at those rare times she felt nervous- forced a smile on her pink-tinted lips and stood up straight.

_Think positive, Cassidy. This could make you or break you._

* * *

It turned out, there hadn't been much to worry about- not with getting lost or being alone, anyway. The moment she was inside the building, she found a reception desk- she was given directions to the office of 'Sargent Viper'- the Drill Sargent of the Academy. It wasn't too far from the entrance, and there weren't many other people around in the lengthy corridors. Cassidy assumed most of the other new trainee's had arrived earlier in the morning, she'd arrived slightly late.

She arrived outside an office with a name plate on the door that read 'Sargent Viper'. She raised her fists and gave three knocks, then waited. Not a moment later the door was opened, by a large, burly man in uniform with a purple mohawk. Just slightly intimidating.

"Hello. My name's Cassidy, I was told to come see you. I'm a new recruit," the blonde girl explained briskly, hauling her heavy bag further onto her shoulder.

Viper glanced at his watch. It was almost seven PM, long past the time she _should _have arrived at. "You're a little late, Miss, but come on in."

She was led into the small office; a somewhat bleak room with a desk, a few chairs and plenty paperwork on the desk along with a sleek black laptop. She sat down opposite Viper, relieved to finally dump that hefty bag down and give her arm a break. She let her eyes scan the room curiously as Viper typed something up on the laptop, keeping her waiting a few minutes.

He eventually glanced up from his laptop after finding her details. "So, you're Cassidy Yamato and you're here for your training, is that correct?"

"Yes."

"Yes _sir_," the man reprimanded, reaching over to the filing cabinet close to his desk and shifting through the files in the second draw. "Cassidy Yamato...ah, here we are." He pulled out a file with her name on it, and then brought out the contents. "According to your forms... it sounds like you went through quit a bit of trouble to get here."

She shrugged. "Well, you_ could _say that. I had to send my fracking application off twice because they 'lost' the first one. Are the employee's here really that incompetent? You ought to hire some new ones. It took me hours filling in that stupid thing, only to have to do it all over again."

"We apologize for that minor mistake, Miss. You see, we receive hundreds of applications a day once the recruiting season comes around, it's only expected that one or two will occasionally be misplaced. But you're here now, and that's the main thing that matters, hm? Now, I have a few rules to run by you, then I shall give you your schedule, a map of the building, and the keys to your dormitory. Then I'll answer any questions you may have."

"Alright," the blonde said, crossing one leg over the other and folding her arms. "Although I'm pretty sure I've heard all the rules already. I got a copy sent to me in the post, I remember reading it and thinking most of them are really petty and pointless."

Viper cleared his throat haughtily; it was already evident this girl was quite an outspoken one. "All of our rules have practical reasons behind them, Cassidy, and you must abide by all of them or face serious consequences, depending on which rule you decide to break," he explained firmly, passing her a pen and a laminated piece of paper with a list of rules and regulations. "This is your contract. Just give these rules a quick once over and make sure you're clear on them, then sign your name at the bottom."

She took the list and let her eyes scan over each bulleted rule.

_**. **All classes, missions and training sessions must be attended. Skipping any of these things is strictly NOT allowed unless you have a valid reason and permission from your mentor or the Drill Sargent. All truancies are registered and will not go unnoticed._

_**. **Uniform must be worn on the premises at __ALL__ times with the exception of gym kits._

_**. **Physically attacking another trainee is strictly __NOT__ allowed and could result in suspension or permanent exclusion._

_**. **Disrespect, insolence or disobedience towards your superiors __WILL__ result in punishment._

_**. **You may __NOT__ leave the premises without permission. No exceptions._

_**. **Relationships between you and your team-mates __must__NOT__ go any further than friendship. Sexual or romantic relationships are __FORBIDDEN__. Disregarding this rule will result in consequences._

_**. **You may __NOT__ switch partners without a valid reason and approval from a superior._

_**. **You are expected to work to the __BEST__ of your ability._

_**. **You are expected to treat you peers as you wish to be treated by them._

_**. **Pokemon are __NOT__ allowed out of their Pokeballs in the following areas: sleeping quarters, the cafeteria, the library, the gym. There are, however, various Poke-friendly areas on campus._

_**. **Failure__ of __any__ member to strictly comply with __these rules__ may lead to suspension, expulsion __or practical punishment._

There was some small print at the bottom, about agreeing to the rules and being aware of consequences. Cassidy barely scanned the terms and conditions before she scrawled her name in her perfectly neat handwriting at the bottom, adding a little 'x' out of habit and then glancing up and passing both the pen and the contract back to Viper.

He tucked it away in her folder and looked back at her, resting clasped hands on the desk. "Any questions yet?"

"One," Cassidy replied, raising her index finger. "What's with the relationship ban? Like, I can understand most of the other rules but...seriously, I'm not allowed a boyfriend in this place? That's going to be torture for all the guys. I mean, _look_ at me, they'll all be gagging for me."

"The relationship prohibition is a new rule. We've found in the past, many trainees tend to get caught up in relationships, particularly with our opposite sex pairings. This only proves to be an unnecessary distraction from training, and like rule number eight says, we want everyone to work to the best of their ability."

"Makes sense I guess."

"Now, we need to go over your schedule. Like rule number one says, it's extremely important that you show up to _every_ session, appointment, class and mission- although you won't be partaking in any real missions until much later on in your training," Viper explained, bringing out another laminated sheet of paper and placing it down on the desk facing Cassidy. "This is the schedule you'll be following for the most part."

Cassidy stared down at it. It was a complicated table of time slots, days, and abbreviated words. "God, I highly doubt I'll be able to keep track of all _this_...what are all these abbreviations?"

"Those will make sense once you look at your map and see the names of the different rooms and areas on campus. It may look fairly complex, but it's really rather simple. At the top, you have each day of the week," he said, sliding his finger over to the line of days at the top of the timetable. "On the left hand side, you have time slots. In these boxes here, you have the name or number of the room you'll be in, and then in_ these_ boxes it shows the activity you'll be partaking in. The blank boxes represent breaks and the boxes with 'MP' represent a mission practice- when you have a practice mission you are required to make your way to the lobby to meet with the other trainee's and an executive or myself."

Cassidy blinked, completely and utterly dumbfounded. It seemed anything _but_ simple at the moment.

"Any questions, Cassidy?"

She smiled and shook her head. "No, it's easy. Too easy."

"That's excellent. You seem to be a bright one, Miss Yamato, I've had to go over the schedule countless times with some of the other trainees." He passed the schedule to her. "Keep it on your person, and try not to lose it," he said, sitting back and taking yet another piece of paper out of her file. "Last but not least, we've got a map of the entire building, you're definitely going to need this."

Cassidy took it as he handed it over to her, studying it for a moment. Oh, great. It was almost as complicated as the stupid schedule. This place really _was_ huge, there had to be _hundreds_ of rooms- let alone all the outdoor areas too. She was officially going to get lost in this labyrinth. "You _seriously _expect me to be dead on time for all of my classes when I've got to find my way through these mazes of corridors and-...oh, there's a noodle bar!"

"Once you've settled in, the building won't seem so intimidatingly large. It could take a few weeks, and no doubt you're going to get lost a couple of times, just like all the other newcomers will. The first few days will be used as time for settling in, becoming used to your surroundings and meeting people. We never apply too much pressure at first- although you shouldn't get too comfortable, you'll be pushed to your limits later on."

Cassidy smirked, folding the map up and tucking it onto her pocket. "I don't _have_ limits, Viper."

"That's _sir _to you," he replied sternly. "All superiors must be referred to formally. Now, I've told you all the basic information you'll need to know, for now. Here is a key to your dorm room, do _not_ lose it." He passed her a small, silver key. "Are there any remaining questions before you go to your room?"

Cassidy pondered for a moment, casually lifting a hand to study her manicured nails, wondering if bright pink would possibly match with her new uniform... "I _do _have a question," she began. "All my needs are going to be attended to, right? Like, I'll have twenty-four hour room service and a maid to make my bed in the morning?"

Viper's left eyebrow rose just a little, and he cleared his throat briskly before he spoke. "I hope you realize, Miss Yamato, that the Academy isn't a hotel, nor is your training going to be some sort of lavish vacation. While we try to make all our trainee's reasonably comfortable here at headquarters, we most certainly _won't_ be granting you any 'luxuries'. You will be supplied with the basics; a bed to sleep on, a bathroom, and a cafeteria for food."

Cassidy scowled slightly at this information. Admittedly, she _had_ thought this place was going to be a little like a hotel. Room service, complimentary goods, a mini bar. All those expectations were replaced with disappointment. "Alright, that's what I assumed. I was just checking," she grumbled. "So I don't have anymore questions. May I leave, _sir_?"

"Yes, just a moment, Cassidy, there's one more thing," the Sargent replied coolly, eyes downcast as he shifted through the few papers in his clipboard, pausing for a second as he scanned one page. He glanced up at the increasingly impatient blonde. "I'd like you to be back here in my office tomorrow for 9 AM. You'll be assigned to your partner, whom you'll be training and working with for the foreseeable future _unless_ there turns out to be a relevant reason for reassignment. You'll also be sharing your dorm room after tonight."

Cassidy's expression changed to a curious one just as she was getting up out of her seat. She paused, perching herself back down. "Partner, you say? I thought I'd be working on my own for a while at first, but that's alright," she said with a shrug. "So, what's my partner like?"

"Quiet from what I've seen. What I _can _tell you is that we choose our pairings based on what our professionals think are compatible personalities for a partnership, in hope that you'll work well together and be a success," Viper replied, placing his clipboard down. "Going by your forms, and your personality, Cassidy, you seem better suited to being the leader of your team. But we can make that decision tomorrow."

Cassidy suddenly grinned at the aspect of being 'team leader'. "So I'll be the boss, that's fabulous," she replied haughtily, standing up again, grabbing her map and schedule off the desk and shoving her dorm key in her pocket."Thanks for the info, sir. See ya!" she chirped before he could keep her in there any longer, chuckling as she left the office- with a much more positive attitude than the one she'd gone in with.

She smirked herself as she got outside and began to make her way down the corridor, eyes scanning deftly over the map in her hands so she could find out where her dorm was in the midst of this massive building. Knowing she was going to be the leader of her team had given her a very sudden sense of authority. The thought of having a 'quiet' partner to boss around and give orders to was most definitely her idea of fun. She was, of course, getting ahead of herself. She was merely one out of hundreds of trainees, no more important than anyone else- but she didn't _like _to think that.

"Oof!"

"Ouch!"

Cassidy scowled, glancing up from her map to see who she'd bumped in to. Or, as she had decided, who had dared to bump into _her_. Her eyebrows shot up, violet eyes widening in utter disbelief when she saw who was staring right back at her.

Was this...a _joke_?

A lookalike?

Her mind playing tricks after such a tiring day?

No. The magenta-hair, the ocean blue eyes...it was clearly...

"_Jessica_?" Cassidy exclaimed, a look of disgust crossing her face as she scanned the young woman up and down. Her eyes rested back when they met with Jessie's, and then she just stared. It was a cold, hard stare that said something along the lines of, 'What the hell are you doing here?'

The red-head cast her own eyes down, discomfited by her long-time rivals bitter glare. This was the girl she hadn't seen since Pokemon Tech, back where all the trouble started...

"Cassidy...what a surprise it is to see you here," she managed to mumble after a moment, still avoiding all eye contact with the blonde.

The girls awkwardness was obvious, and it caused a malicious smirk to cross Cassidy's lips. She put a hand on her hip. "Yep, it's been a while, huh?" she replied in a false, friendly tone of voice, continuing to outstare her rival. "May I ask what on _earth _a loser like _you _is doing in a place like this?" She paused. "You...don't _seriously_ think you can cut it as a criminal...do you, Jess?" she questioned amusedly, giving a few forced snorts of laughter as if this was _the_ most absurd thing in the world.

Jessie clenched her fists, shifting her eyes to glare at Cassidy "As a matter of fact, yes. I do. I wanted to do something rewarding with my life, although if I'd have known _you_ were going to be here I probably would have steered clear."

Cassidy raised her eyebrows disapprovingly. "Well, that's just a darn shame, isn't it?" she shot back. "I don't believe you're actually here. Didn't you always used to say you wanted to be an actress? You should've followed your dream, honey! I mean, I'm sure there's horror movie directors out there who'd _love_ someone with a face like yours to play the part of an ogre or gremlin."

Jessie's fists balled up tighter, her knuckles going white. She had to grit her teeth and mentally calm herself in order not to smack Cassidy across the face. "Listen, Cassidy," she said as calmly as possible. "I really don't want any trouble. This is a fresh start for me, I'm trying to get somewhere in life. So, if you're willing to, I'll put the past behind and we can call it quits. Either that or we just stay away from each other."

The fact that Jessie seemed so determined on keeping her cool and 'calling it quits' made Cassidy's smirk grow, a little spark in her violet eyes. "Ya know what? You're right. It's childish, this whole 'rivalry' thing."

Jessie's shoulders dropped as if a weight had been lifted off of them and her expression relaxed. "Well...that's good. I'm glad you agree," she said, managing a small smile.

"But hey, who doesn't _love_ letting their inner child out sometimes, hm?" Cassidy added maliciously, grinning at Jessie's expression. "Oh, Jessie-Jess. You know I wouldn't end our rivalry for the _world_!"

"You're a bitch, Cassidy. You really are," Jessie snapped, frowning as Cassidy came closer, the smell of her fragrant perfume evident as they came face to face, noses very nearly touching due to their almost identical heights.

"Got that right, freak. And you're gonna wish you _had_ steered clear once I'm finished with you," the blonde replied, her sweet tone of voice turning sour as her lips formed a snarl. She brought her face the last few inches closer to Jessie's, eye contact never ceasing. "If you know what's good for you, _sweetie_, you'll stay the hell out of my way for the duration of our time at this place, is that clear?"

The red-head forced herself to glare right back and stand her ground. Oh, it was clear alright. She knew _exactly _what her ex 'BFF' was like. But she wasn't going to be intimidated and pushed around by her anymore- she wasn't the same old Jessica from Pokemon Tech, she'd acquired some backbone these past few years. "No. But I'll tell you what _is_ clear. I'm not going to be bullied by you, and you're not going to sabotage my training."

Cassidy sneered, her eye contact with Jessie faltering just slightly. "We'll see, loser girl," she hissed in the red-head's face, giving her a hard shove in the chest and then taking her chance to set off back down the corridor before anything else could be said or done.

Once she was 'safe' around the corner, she stopped to have another look at her map and go over what had just happened. What was that loser Jessie doing here? The thought of that failure _actually_making something of herself was laughable- let alone becoming a professional criminal. The girl was a total _clutz_. A loser, a nobody, a wannabe version of everything that came naturally to her blonde and beautiful rival. Cassidy decided that she was going to make sure it _stayed_ that way.

She could easily use Jessie as her source of amusement from this day forward. She could also use her to make everyone else fear and respect her as well. Once they knew how conniving she could be, they would never dare mess with her. It would be simple. After all, it was a piece of cake antagonizing Jessie, who'd be sure to warn _everyone_ how 'evil' her rival was. Cassidy knew _exactly _which spots to hit,_exactly_which strings to tug, _exactly_ what lit the right fuses. And she'd use it against her.

Not to mention, having some competition in this place...could only be a good thing.


	2. Chapter 2

Beep beep beep beep...

Cassidy awoke gradually as the sound of the digital alarm on her bedside cabinet faded into her ears. She moaned tiredly, eyelids heavy as she reached one arm across to shut the noisy thing off. As she caught a glimpse, she saw the red digital numbers on the screen read 8:56 AM.

Her previously half-closed eyelids shot open at the realization that she was _supposed_ to be at Viper's office in less than five minutes. Considering it normally took her at least an hour to get ready, that clearly _wasn't _going to be achievable. Instead of throwing the bedsheets back and rushing to get dressed in a blind panic, she let herself have five more minutes sleep.

Being late was fashionable.

By the time she'd eventually slid out of bed, had a shower, got dressed and done her hair, it was already half past nine. Looking at herself in the mirror above the bathroom sink, she slid a tube of cherry lip gloss over her lips, smacking them together to blend it in and then putting a touch of black mascara on her lashes. She smirked at herself, giving a little wink. She'd always adored her appearance and considered herself, well...as perfect as it gets. She knew for a fact that with her impeccable figure, she even managed to make this unappealing uniform look half decent. It was black boots and gloves, royal blue pants and a matching blue collared top with a red R on the front- Cassidy had fastened her black belt extra tight around her small waist to accentuate her curves. Customizing the uniform was a no no, but she did wear her triangular pink earrings. They were large, bright and shiny; an evident demand for attention.

She was, at long last, ready to leave her room and make her way down to Viper's office, not forgetting the map that she knew she would so desperately need. Getting lost would _not_ be cool, especially as she was a little more than 'fashionably' late now. As she walked briskly through the corridors, she wondered about what her partner was going to be like. Viper hadn't said whether they were male or female. In all honesty, she prayed it would be a guy. Unsurprisingly, the fact that Cassidy was good-looking and_ extremely _conceited about it, didn't bode well with other females. Girls hated her for her cutting remarks and stuck-up attitude, and the fact that she laughed it off only made it worse. But as for men, they were easy to handle. She could have them wrapped around her little finger purely because of her looks. She was blonde and had boobs, so they all put two and two together and assumed she was 'easy'. In some cases, this had been very true.

When Cassidy reached Vipers office she felt just a _little_ nervous about how late she actually was. She could only hope that he wouldn't yell at her and give her a punishment- gosh, she'd only been here a _day_. She knocked on the door and waited a moment, until it was opened.

"I _know_ I'm late, _sir_, before you start ranting and raving I'm _sorry._ Gosh, it's not my fault I overslept! Yesterday was the most exhausting day in a long time and I'm not used to being up early, so you'll just have to deal with it, alright?" the blonde blurted out all in one shot, crossing her arms and indignantly glaring up at a displeased Viper.

"An hour and fifteen minutes late, Cassidy. Unacceptable. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I told you to be at my office for 9am. Being late isn't something you should make a habit out of," he reprimanded, shaking his head at the girl wearily and standing aside for her to enter the office, still continuing to ramble on about how punctuality was vital in this Academy. As Cassidy edged past the Sargent she noticed a young man with green hair sat in the room, he glanced at her as Viper ranted, and then he rolled his eyes mockingly behind the man's back. Cassidy grinned. Was this her new partner?

"-Once your training starts, this lateness will unhesitatingly result in punishment. Please bare that in mind next time." When Viper eventually ceased lecturing, he closed the door behind Cassidy and retreated to his desk. "Now, on a lighter note- Cassidy, this is your new partner, Butch," he announced, gesturing to the green-haired young man. "And Butch, this is Cassidy."

Cassidy stared at him. Her partner. He was staring back at her with gorgeous deep brown eyes. Wow. Not only did she get her guy partner, but he was pretty darn cute too. Tall, with shiny teal-green hair and a strong looking build. Sure, he wasn't the beach-blonde, tanned pretty boy she usually went for...but still, such a handsome face... there was something oddly charming about him. She had to tear her eyes away from the guy before she embarrassed herself. She perched herself down on the seat next to him and managed to glance back at him, giving a casual nod. "Hey."

He smiled, giving her a little nod back. "How's it goin'?"

Cassidy's expression faltered when she realized his good-looks didn't quite match up with that..._horribly_ raspy voice that just came out of his mouth. Really gravelly. Annoyingly so. Like he chain smoked five packs a day. She was staring at him again, although not in the awe-stricken way she had been doing a few minutes ago. More of a disgusted stare. The way you would stare at something extremely repulsive. She couldn't really insult him in front of Viper, so she let her expression do all the talking, for now.

Butch frowned, friendly smile fading, and then looked away awkwardly.

Viper looked up from some paperwork he'd been reading over and glanced at the two trainees, noticing the sombre expression on Butch's face that hadn't been there a minute ago. He misunderstood, thinking the young man was just shy. "It can often be a little awkward when you meet for the first time; but I assure you, after a few weeks of sharing a room and working together, you'll be much more comfortable in each others company."

"As long as he doesn't talk," Cassidy said between fake coughs.

"Today, I'll leave the two of you to become acquainted and get to know each other a little, you could also try and become more familiar with the building, perhaps go for a walk around," Viper suggested. "We also need to make the decision on who's going to be the team leader. All pairings tend to have a more dominant role. Leadership is a matter of intelligence, courage, and discipline."

"Sounds just like me. I'll be team leader," Cassidy said decidedly, glancing at Butch. "Unless...you think you'd be a more effective leader...?"

He shook his head, eyes remaining downcast. "No. It's fine," he mumbled.

"As I assumed." She smiled and looked back at Viper proudly. "Well, there's our decision, I'm the leader."

"Very well," he said, pausing before he leaned forward slightly on the desk, giving the blonde girl a somewhat stern stare. "Although, I suggest you don't get too ahead of yourself, Cassidy. It seems you could be quite...assertive, and that's not always necessary. As an effective team leader you need to be able to think quick and have a positive attitude, not be pushy and controlling."

Cassidy smirked, rolling her eyes as she leaned back in her seat. "Well, I'll try, Viper-"

"Sir, Cassidy. Sir."

"Sorry, _sir_. I'll try not to be pushy."

"Good. Well, I think that's all for now. I personally think the two of you could make an excellent pairing once you become a little more familiar with each other. Do either of you have any questions to ask?" They both stayed silent. "Then you are free to leave. If there are any problems, feel free to come and see me here, although I can't promise I'll always be around."

"There won't be any problems, don't you worry, sir," Cassidy replied sincerely, standing up along with her partner and heading out of the office the moment Viper gave a dismissive wave of the hand.

It was only once they were outside with the door closed she glanced at Butch, who was a few steps behind her with his hands in his pockets, looking extremely reserved.

"So, uh, how's it goin'?" Cassidy mocked in the hoarsest voice she could manage, pressing her lips together in order to stop a giggle escaping.

Butch knew full well she was making fun of him, but he chose to ignore it and take her seriously. An angry reaction never got him anywhere- he knew _that_ from experience. "Great, thanks," he replied in the friendliest tone he could manage as they set off down the corridor together, glancing at her and forcing a smile. "Your name was Cassidy, right?"

"Yeah. And you're...Botch, correct? Botch with the botched up voice, how fitting," she replied, glancing at him to see his expression. It had rapidly changed to an extremely irritated and upset one, like he was trying desperately to hold back anger. "Jeez...I'm just kidding, for gods sake. Can't you take a joke?"

"The name's Butch, it's not 'Botch'," he corrected her swiftly, sighing. This hadn't been the first time someone had gotten his name wrong, much to his frustration. "And _no_, I'm not so great at taking jokes when I'm the butt of them- which seems to be nine times outta ten."

"I'm not surprised," Cassidy remarked curtly. "What on earth's wrong with your voice, froggo? Sounds nasty, whatever you've got."

Butch rolled his eyes, hoping it would look like he didn't care. Although secretly, mocking remarks about his raspy voice were another thing he had to put up with on a daily basis, and it did _no_ favours for his self esteem. "Look, we've only just met. Is it really necessary to make such a personal remark? Whether you like it or not, you're gonna have to tolerate my voice just like I'm gonna have to tolerate your stinkin' attitude," he snapped.

Cassidy's brows rose at his aggravated response- even though a reaction was the exact thing she'd been looking to inflict, as usual. "Wow. I wish I'd been given a less grumpy partner," she muttered dejectedly, playing the victim.

He glanced at her and heaved a sigh. "I'm not grumpy, I just think it was pretty rude of you to make fun of me like that when you don't even know me," he replied. "But alright. How's about we start over? Without the insults about my voice?"

The decent thing to do would have been to agree and stop acting bratty, but Cassidy decided she didn't _have_ to be nice to this guy. There were no rules saying they had to be friends. She shrugged, continuing to mock his voice under her breath.

This didn't go unnoticed. Butch forced himself to ignore it though, gritting his teeth. "So uh, why'd you join Team Rocket?" he questioned, in an attempt to steer the subject away from any provocation.

She glanced at him, intentionally giving him an 'odd' look that would hopefully discomfit him. It did, judging by his sudden lack of eye contact. "That's none of your business," she said coldly. "Who are you to ask me personal questions?"

He quietly let out a frustrated sigh, hanging his head a bit so he could roll his eyes behind his bangs. "Just trying to find something to talk about. Unless you'd rather we didn't talk at all...I gotta say though, that'd be sorta awkward considering we're gonna be around each other pretty much twenty-four seven from this day on."

She frowned. He was arrogant! "So, let it be awkward."

He stayed quiet for a moment, still walking by her side, but keeping his head down. He was trying not to let it show, but her attitude was making him feel very uncomfortable and unwilling to speak. Still, confrontation was the last thing he wanted when he was going to be working with her. "How old are ya?"

"Seventeen."

"Heh, nineteen."

"I never asked you. And just because you're older, I hope you don't think you're going to tell me what to do and take charge. Like we decided, I'm team leader, what I say goes," she shot back with an unnecessary amount of defensiveness.

"Sure. I never said anything about telling you what to do. I'd be a lousy leader," he replied. "Not bossy enough."

Cassidy narrowed her lavender eyes at him contemptuously. "Are you insinuating I'm bossy?"

"Not at all."

She scoffed. "I bet you're not _smart_ enough to be a leader either," she retorted smugly.

"Hey, who says I'm not smart? You don't even know me."

"My idiot radar senses these things."

He chuckled quietly. "You sure your idiot radar ain't broken? I consider myself to be pretty intelligent, I might not seem it, but I am."

"Whatever."

Butch sighed. It was obvious by her negative attitude and dirty looks that the girl had taken an instant dislike to him, so his efforts at being friendly seemed useless. "Uh...so," he began awkwardly, willing to give it one more shot before deciding she wasn't worth his time. "Not much to do around this place at the moment, huh? Do you wanna show me the dorm room we're unfortunately gonna be sharing as of tonight? Or we could go find the cafeteria? Here's hoping they've got some decent food, I'm pretty hungry."

"Or we could just like, not hang out with each other," the blonde replied coldly, although really she was a little tempted to see how the cafeteria was. Not with _this_ guy, though.

He shrugged. "We're partners now, might as well get used to being in each others company."

"No. I don't need you and your guttural voice cramping my style."

Butch hesitated for a moment, staring at her. He couldn't_ believe _the sheer rudeness of this girl. "...Know what?" he began curtly. "That's fine. You seem like a real stuck-up little brat anyway. So, I'll see ya when I see ya," he snapped, before turning on his heel just like that, and storming off the opposite way.

Cassidy sighed frustratedly, shaking her head as she continued walking herself, briskly. She didn't know where she was going. Maybe back to her dorm room? It seemed like a tempting idea, considering that soon, it wasn't going to be 'her' dorm room. It was going to be_ their_ dorm room. Hers, and that_ idiot_. Sure, there was no real reason for her to have behaved how she just had, and she knew it. But she was Cassidy, if she didn't like someone, she made sure they knew it. In her eyes, that was an extremely good quality of hers- the ability to speak her mind.

After the way things had just turned out, whether it was all her fault or not, she decided that Jessie wasn't the _only_ one in for a rough ride at this place.


	3. Chapter 3

Cassidy sat cross-legged on her single bed, one hand spread out in front of her as she painted each nail a vivid shade of lilac. She was trying to distract herself from the fact that she was becoming increasingly homesick. She'd been feeling it since lunchtime earlier that day, a hopeless feeling of longing to be back in her cosy bedroom back home- she missed her portable television with one of her favourite soaps on the screen. She missed all of her old photographs and posters clogging up the walls. She missed her silver sequinned cushion and dressing table with little lights around the mirror like movie stars have. It was strange, but she even missed Carla, even though she'd barely ever spent any time downstairs with her. Just knowing that she'd always been there was a comfort.

But now, she was in this bleak, grey dorm room, freezing cold because she couldn't get the radiator to turn on, uncomfortable because the mattress on her bed was so springy, bored because the small tv only had six channels and not a single one of them had anything worth watching. She was painting her nails as slowly as possible because she knew once she'd finished she'd be left with absolutely nothing to occupy herself with. If only she had some friends around this place...

She jumped, glancing over at the door as she heard a key turning in the lock. When the door opened and she realized it was just the raspy idiot from before, her expression turned into a mask of disgust. "What the hell do you think you're doing?" she demanded in disbelief as he let himself into the room, holding a travel bag.

"Coming to unpack my stuff in my new room, what's it _look_ like?" Butch replied as he dumped his bag down on the bed adjacent to hers.

She gaped at him indignantly. "You can't just stroll in here like that! You have to knock!"

He scoffed, unzipping his bag and beginning to take out his belongings. He didn't have much- a few clothes and basic necessities. "'Fraid not, blondie. It's my room too, remember? Go ask Viper if you got a problem with it."

Realizing he was right and this was no longer just 'her' room, she huffed, a scowl on her face as she went back to painting her nails. "Just don't come anywhere near my bed," she grumbled.

"Wouldn't dream of it, blondie, is it okay if I put my clothes in the wardrobe over there?" he questioned breezily as he crossed the room to the small, wood wardrobe, a few items of clothing folded up in his arms. He didn't wait for an answer from his new partner. He needn't have bothered; the moment he opened the door of the wardrobe, overflowed items began to tumble out due to the fact that it was absolutely jam-packed with shoes, tops, skirts, dresses, jeans...

He glanced over his shoulder at Cassidy. "Seriously?"

She just raised her eyebrows innocently, shrugging before she went back to painting her nails. "A girl can never have too many clothes."

He rolled his eyes, turning back to the overflowing wardrobe with a helpless expression. "Well... sure, but this is stupid. We're here for training, not a fashion show. I mean, when are you even gonna get the chance to wear all this?"

"Parties."

"There's not gonna _be_ any parties," he replied, tutting as his eyes scanned for a spare spot in the wardrobe. Not even an inch of space? Nope. Cassidy had well and truly filled the wardrobe, so he simply stuffed his clothes in there along with the rest and shut the doors abruptly before any more attire could escape.

Cassidy snorted. "Genius solution."

"Lucky I don't have much stuff. We'd really be stumped if that was the case," he remarked, taking some cologne, a can of deodorant and a toothbrush out of his bag. "I'm putting these in the bathroom."

Cassidy rolled her eyes as he passed her. He was so damn annoying! "I don't need a running commentary of what you're doing," she snapped, quickly silencing once he came back into the room.

"You've taken up the_ entire _bathroom shelf with all those soap things."

"Yeah? Well, deal with it," Cassidy shot back bitterly. She glanced over at him, craning her neck to see what he was taking out of his bag now. Her left brow upraised when he brought out several packs of cigarettes in each hand. Well... _now_ his voice made sense. "You smoke."

"Uh-huh," he replied, putting the packs away in the top draw of his bedside cabinet and then emptying his bag of the last few packs. Although, there were a lot more than a 'few'. There seemed to be enough to last _months_. "Do you?"

Cassidy scoffed, shaking her head disapprovingly at the countless packs littered on his bed. "_God _no. It's a disgusting habit, no _wonder_ you sound like a croaky old frog. I bet you have throat cancer."

"I doubt that," he said as he began to put the rest of his packs away in the increasingly full draw. He glanced over his shoulder at her, giving her a pretty grave look. "Now, quit making fun of my personal defect, will ya?"

"Fine, whatever," Cassidy retorted, placing her jar of nail polish down and scowling over at him indignantly. "I don't care about you, or your voice, or your nasty habits, or the fact that you're in _my_ room, or anything. You hear me?"

Butch laughed it off, raising his hands up in mock surrender. "Loud and clear, blondie!"

"And stop calling me that."

"Cassidy, then."

"Yeah."

"Nice name ya got there."

"Butch is a dumb name."

"Aw, thanks."

He flopped down on his bed with a sigh once he'd finished unpacking, crossing his arms behind his head comfortably. For some reason, this earned a scornful snort of annoyance from Cassidy. He wearily turned his head to look at her. "So, goldilocks, c'mon. Spill it. What's your problem, huh?" he questioned briskly, staring her down.

She shot him an irritated glance, unswerved by his glare. "Excuse me?"

"Your problem. With me. What is it?"

She shrugged. "I don't know."

"That's a pretty irrelevant reason if you ask me. So d'ya think we could maybe start over?" he questioned tentatively, eyebrows heightening. "I think we got off to a bad start, and I don't wanna fight with someone I'm gonna be working with, y'know?"

Cassidy smirked at this, shaking her head. She knew the real reason why he was being so nicey-nice. He was a guy, it was _obvious_ he just wanted to get into her pants. "No. I don't want to be friends, Botch."

"I never said we have to be friends, just quit being so..."

"Being so what?"

He sighed, wearily closing his eyes for a moment. This girl was _frustrating_. "You're acting like I've done something wrong. And I don't think I have. I'm just trying to be friendly and here you are, throwing it back in my face."

"Because I don't like you. You're fucking irritating, can't you just be quiet?" she shot back harshly.

"No. I don't want to be quiet, blondie."

She gritted her teeth. What was it about this guy that got on her nerves so much? Usually, it was near impossible to infuriate her. _She_ annoyed everyone else with her arrogance. People didn't do that to _her_. "You'll be quiet, you loser. Because I'm just going to ignore you from now on," she hissed.

He suddenly sat up, glaring over at her. "Seriously, what is _with_ you? Tell me what I've done to offend you so much!"

"Who said you offended me? I just plain don't _like_ you, I don't need a reason, and I don't need to explain myself to you, end of story." She flashed a smile at him as she hopped up off her bed, grabbing her folded up nightdress from her pillow and heading into the bathroom without giving him another glance.

Butch huffed furiously when the bathroom door closed. What was with this brat? He tried there and then to recall saying anything that might have offended her, but as far as he knew, he'd only defended himself when she'd been rude. He scowled up at the ceiling of the room. It was just his luck to get landed with such a stuck-up bitch for a partner. He'd joined Team Rocket to get _away_ from an unfortunate past, and for once in his life maybe get along with people and feel like he belonged somewhere. But if he was working with someone like Cassidy, that wasn't going to be as easy to achieve as he thought. He knew her type.

After having a wash, combing out her long golden hair, and changing into that very short nightdress, Cassidy came back into the bedroom, placing her neatly folded uniform at the end of her bed. Just before she climbed under the covers she caught site of Butch out of the corner of her eye, his own eyes seemed very fixated on a particular something.

"Are you looking at my _boobs_?" the blonde shrieked furiously, causing him to jump.

Butch's cheeks suddenly flushed as red as tomatos at the realization that he had indeed, been staring at her chest. Only _half _intentionally. "...Kinda hard to miss 'em," he grunted, shifting his eye contact back to the ceiling.

Cassidy was the one to blush violently now, quickly getting into bed and under the covers so that only her head was exposed. "Creep," she spat.

"Bitch."

She scowled, wrapping the cover around herself and sliding one hand under her pillow as she always did. "Don't talk to me again, I want to get some shut-eye."

"G'night, then," he said, _just_ to see if she was possibly polite enough to at least reply with a simple 'goodnight'. There was a long silence as he waited for a response. And it continued. He heaved a weary sigh, perhaps a bit of a disappointed one, before he got up, making sure to be fairly quiet as he went into the bathroom to get ready for bed himself.


	4. Chapter 4

Bright and early that next morning, a sleeping Cassidy's ears were graced with a noise so loud and thunderous that for a split second she thought a jumbo jet was taking off. But when her eyelids lifted and she turned her head to her right to see what the source of this horrible sound was, she realized it was just her dozing partner.

He snored. Loudly.

Cassidy scowled, muttering furiously under her breath as she threw the covers back, grabbed her uniform and stomped into the small ensuite bathroom, slamming the door behind her in hope that it would wake him up and stop that unbearable noise.

God, she could _still_ hear it with the shower running. She was certain now that living with him was going to be a nightmare. That voice, his snoring, the fact that he was so overly irritating. How she'd be able to tolerate him for the rest of her days was a complete mystery to her. Maybe if she treated him badly enough, he'd get fed up and beg for a new partner.

Fortunately, by the time Cassidy had showered, gotten dressed and done her hair, Butch's snoring had ceased. She came back into the bedroom and plunked herself down at the end of her single bed with her cosmetics bag and a compact mirror, back facing to her partner who was still laying in bed, clearly not having been awake for very long.

She could see him through the small mirror as she began to apply her moisturiser, and she let her violet eyes stay fixed on him for a moment. Why on _earth_ did he still seem to look so darn attractive with his hair dishevelled and a groggy expression on his face? It wasn't fair. Why did he have to be so... handsome, like that? It made it the slightest bit more difficult to hate him. The blonde frowned when she caught the subject of her thoughts staring right back at her, probably thinking she couldn't see him. "Is there a problem?" she snapped suddenly.

"...Not that I'm aware of."

She gritted her teeth, cringing at the sound of that raspy voice. "Then I suggest you quit staring at me. Thanks."

Butch sighed, but obediently looked away. It was hard _not_ to stare at the golden-haired beauty. She was very pretty, even if her personality was...well, ugly. "Sorry. Must've spaced out," he mumbled, running a hand through his green hair as he let out an exaggerated yawn. "Didja sleep well?"

"Yes," she responded irritably, rubbing the smooth, cold moisturiser into her skin, her free hand keeping the mirror held up in front of her face. "By the way, are you aware that you snore like a bulldozer?"

"Ah, yeah. It's a...problem, I know," he said sheepishly as he scratched the back of his neck, chuckling. "Sorry about that. Guess you'll just have to get used to it."

"How can I get used to _that_? If I start losing beauty sleep because of your terrible snoring..." She paused, realizing there was pretty much nothing she_ could_ do about it. "...Well, let's just put it _this _way, I'll put a stop to it."

"Heh, that doesn't sound too promising."

She blanked him, rummaging through her bag for mascara.

Butch cast his eyes down at the lack of response. "..So uh...do you wanna go down to the cafeteria and get breakfast?"

"Whatever. I was going there anyway," she replied, her voice an unamused monotone.

Butch watched her in silence for a few minutes as she went through her bag. She was even doing _that_ in an irritable manner, taking things out and slamming them down on the bed beside her. What a little brat. He'd been hoping that the way she'd been acting the other day was all down to a bad mood. He'd hoped that when they woke up the next morning she'd be a _completely_ different girl. But no. She was definitely still the same, no doubt about it.

He stayed quiet for a moment longer before finally getting up and picking up his rumpled pile of clothes from the end of his bed. He paused as he passed his partner to go into the bathroom, and for a split second it looked as if he was about to speak, that shy expression on his face. But then he quickly carried on to the bathroom, closing the door behind him.

* * *

Cassidy's eyes trailed around the packed cafeteria, her cheek resting in her palm while her other hand distractedly stirred her cup of coffee on the table. It was amazing how many trainees there actually_were _in this place- there wasn't another free table in sight. The blonde wearily turned her head to glance across the small table at her partner, who was casually munching on his toast. Even _that_ irritated her. "Do you have to chew with your mouth open like that?" she snapped, disgustedly averting her eyes elsewhere.

Butch glanced up and intentionally exaggerated his open-mouthed chewing, which earned a frown from Cassidy. "Force of habit," he began, pausing to swallow. "Like it even matters."

"It matters if I have to see the ground up food in your mouth, it's gross," she retorted with a roll of her lavender eyes. "Anyway, just hurry up and eat, I don't want to be stuck here all day."

His teal-tinted eyebrows rose. "Oh, so you're already putting your 'team leader' skills into good use, huh, blondie?" he said, sitting back and crossing arms across his chest. "I'll take as long as I like."

"Pathetic," Cassidy muttered, lifting her cup of coffee and taking a brisk sip. It seemed he wasn't taking her attitude quite so seriously anymore and his confidence was peaking just a little. But she wasn't planning on letting him get away with being a smartass towards her; she _was _team leader, she deserved respect and nothing less. "You can take as long as you like, you raspy creep. I'm finishing my coffee and leaving, got it?"

He shrugged casually, attempting not to let her hostile words bother him. "Sure," he replied. "Where ya going?"

"The gym. Official training starts tomorrow so I wanted to ready myself," she replied.

"Good idea, I'll come with you."

She heaved a frustrated sigh at his resounding response, pinching the bridge of her nose in aggravation and then glancing to her side with a weary-eyed expression. "You don't have to follow me every god-damn place I go."

"...I- I know," he replied, the annoyance in her voice making him cringe just slightly. God, if only she knew how much of an _idiot _she was making him feel. "But that doesn't mean everywhere _you_ go is off limits to _me_. Or does it? Only, I wasn't aware you owned this building. "

She turned her head back and glared at him with piercing violet eyes. "Tell me something- do you think you're funny?"

His mouth formed a smirk. "Well, I have my moments."

"Don't change the subject. I said you don't have to follow me every god-damn place I go, do you understand?"

He sighed, but managed to restrain rolling his eyes or something else that might annoy her even further. "You sure do have a problem with me, don't you? Look, I'm not following you, alright? But we're partners."

"So _what_? It doesn't mean we have to be together twenty-four seven," the blonde replied briskly, grabbing her unfinished cup of coffee and standing, the legs of her chair scraping across the floor as she got to her feet.

The moment she began to leave the table, Butch stood up too. "Well, yeah, it kinda does," he insisted as he followed closely behind her, despite the fact that her pace was increasing by the second and she_clearly_ didn't want him there.

A frustrated sigh escaped the blondes lips when she sensed him on her tail. "Go away," she ordered coldly, shoving past any other trainees in her path.

"You don't boss me around."

"Go _away._ Before I _make_ you."

"You and whose army?"

"I'll warn you one last time."

"Wah. I'm terrified."

That did it. In the blink of an eye, Cassidy whipped round and sloshed her coffee over him, earning an extremely startled gasp and striking all the nearby tables silent. "Will _that_ teach you to quit stalking me, scumbag?" she spat, fully aware of the attention she'd brought on to herself and her partner. There were a few whispers, chuckles, a _lot _of stares.

Butch just stood there, his expression a mixture of shock and humiliation as the warm liquid seeped through his top. He could feel his cheeks flushing bright red, just as he could feel everyone's eyes staring right at him. Were they laughing at him? Probably. Why couldn't he stand up for himself? He knew he looked pathetic. It looked like his plan of not having attention drawn to himself in this place had been well and truly ruined. He couldn't handle this. The staring, the whispers.

Everyone was waiting for him to do something. Cassidy bit her lip in amusement, failing to hold back a malicious smirk as her eyes remained fixed on her partner- urging him to react and embarrass himself even _more_. She couldn't tell whether anger was building up inside him or he was just shocked that she'd humiliated him in front of their peers.

Finally, he snapped out of it and budged; he huffed shakily and gave the blonde a violent shove, then darted out of the cafeteria with his head held down.

Cassidy smiled, slowly turning her head to glance at the onlookers. "Shows over, folks," she piped up breezily, giving a little shrug before turning on her heel and strutting out of the cafeteria; her head held high and a proud grin on her face- as if she really was pleased with herself for causing an unnecessary amount of mortification for someone who hadn't really been at fault in the slightest. But who cared? He'd leave her alone now, no doubt about it.

* * *

It was only a couple of hours later, when Cassidy was in the gym locker rooms, getting changed back into her uniform after a gruelling workout, that she began to feel...what was this..._guilt_? Her conscience was getting at her. She'd been far too occupied in the gym to pay heed to the remorse pecking away, but now she couldn't think of anything else. She kept picturing the look on Butch's face when she'd embarrassed him like that; he'd looked _devastated. _A mixture of pure mortification and anxiety. And the way he'd hurried out of there as fast as possible...

She pulled on her heavy black boots, sighing. It _had_ been uncalled for. She was stubborn, but she wasn't completely evil to the core of her heart. Not quite. She felt guilt just as much as the next person, she just didn't act upon it. And she wouldn't.

"That was some cruel stunt you pulled in the cafeteria earlier today. You've only been here a few days, and you're already causing drama. Typical _you_."

Cassidy glanced up at the familiar voice, only to see her red-haired rival had entered the room and was rummaging through her locker for her uniform.

The blonde smirked, neatly folding her gym shorts and t-shirt up. "Well, you know me, _Jessica_. Cruella Deville."

Jessie rolled her eyes as she hesitantly began to remove her gym kit- a little insecure and self-conscious about doing this in front of her oh-so-perfect and hypercritical rival. "No shame, hm? I pity your partner- I'll bet any amount of money you're going to be the end of _that_ unlucky chump."

"I'm the end of everyone, Jessie-Jess," Cassidy replied breezily, gathering her perfectly folded gym kit in her arms and standing up. She smirked across at Jessie; taking note of the red-heads insecure demeanour. "I'll be the end of you too if you don't watch your back. That is, if you can actually turn your head enough to see your back, fat ass," she added scornfully, giving a few scornful snorts of laughter as she headed over to her locker.

Jessie stopped in her tracks, scowling. "Sorry, what did you just call me?"

"Fat ass. It's just, you look like you've gained weight since Pokemon Tech," Cassidy replied matter-of-factly as she put her kit away, closing her locker door behind her. She turned around and gave Jessie a sickeningly sweet smile. "But the funny thing is, you're still flat chested as ever."

Jessie did her best to ignore the remarks, though she couldn't help a few tears of anger springing to her blue eyes as she hurriedly began to put her uniform on, which was as red as her cheeks. "I know for a fact that's not true, you bitch," she snapped, stuffing her kit away and slamming the door of her locker, causing a slight echo in the empty room. She kept her back to Cassidy, her palm still resting on the cold metal of the locker door. "You're just trying to get at me, but it won't work. Not anymore."

"Get at you? Now, why would I do a thing like that?" Cassidy replied innocently. She forced a sympathetic expression and sighed. "Why are you so bitter, Jessie...?"

"Oh, please..."

"It's because you're jealous, isn't it?" the blonde continued, her voice remaining soft and sensitive, although the vindictive glint in her eyes was anything but. "Jealous because...you always wanted to be like me? I was popular, you weren't. I got straight A's, you got F's. I had guys all over me, you had nobody. I-"

"Just shut up, Cassidy!" Jessie hissed, whipping around to finally face the girl, a furious scowl embedded on her flushed face. Her gloved fists were clenched tightly, and she was putting all her efforts into not reaching across to give Cassidy the punch she deserved. "I-I'm not jealous of you, alright? I don't care if you were popular, I don't _care_ if you were smarter, I don't even care if you're supposedly 'prettier' than me _or_ if you got all the guys in Pokemon Tech! Can't you get it into your conceited little mind that the reason I hate you is because you're an evil, backstabbing skank who takes pleasure in making other people feel utter shit!"

Cassidy only pressed her lips together, eyebrows raised innocently, as if surprised by her rivals outburst. Jessie's temper was nothing new to her, however- getting a reaction was as easy as one two three. "I thought...you weren't going to let me get at you?" the blonde chirped in a childlike tone, batting her lashes as if she was confused.

Jessie swallowed, forcing her squared-up shoulders to relax. She held her head up. "...I'm not. See?"

Cassidy just scoffed, the innocent look fading to a disapproving snarl she passed her rival. "Whatever, _weirdo_."

With that, the blonde stalked out of the locker rooms, a satisfactory glint in her eyes. Seeing Jessie all worked up and bothered by the harsh taunts just fuelled Cassidy's malice even further. She knew she'd have to be sneaky with 'Operation make-Jessie's-life-hell' – something that she hadn't quite completed back in Pokemon Tech. Physically hurting her was out of the question- there was no _way _she'd be dumb enough to risk getting kicked out of the Academy all for Jessie's sake. But verbally hurting her was okay, for now, until she could come up with some 'genius plan' to completely sabotage the magenta-haired girls potential success. No _way_ would she let that loser make it to agent status. Not a chance.

Cassidy went straight back to her room after getting herself a diet Coke from one of the vending machines near the cafeteria. As she expected, Butch was in the dorm room, sat at the top of his bed watching something on their small tv- although he didn't look too interested in what was going on on the screen. More like he was off in a daydream. He snapped out of it, however, when he heard the door briskly being shut, and his eyes met Cassidy's.

The green-haired young man quickly looked away, heart pounding a little as his partner strutted into the room. After the stunt she'd pulled earlier that day, he was unsure of how to act towards her. Ignore her? Give her a taste of her own medicine? Apologize... even though she _was _the one at fault? He swallowed and chose the first option, refusing to even glance over at her as she flopped down on her own bed and kicked her boots off. Maybe _she_ would apologize.

"What's_ this_ boring junk you're watching?" the blonde demanded, scoffing at what looked like a documentary on the tv. She looked at him dumbfoundedly when she received no response. "Ignorant!" she chortled, snorting and shaking her head as she cracked open her can of coke. There was an extremely tiny, minuscule part of her, very deep down, urging her to just...say sorry and make amends. He was her partner, after all. But as always, her pride prevented the word 'sorry' from escaping her mouth.

"So, is this what it's going to be like? You won't respond to anything I say?" she pressed, making it seem like she was more amused than irritated by the fact he wasn't talking to her. "Rid-iculous."

"You seem pretty riled by the fact that I'm ignoring you," Butch eventually grunted, eyes staying fixed on the tv screen. "You just can't _bear_ not having my attention, huh?"

"Oh, you're ignoring me? I could've sworn you just talked to me," she said sarcastically, flashing a glare at him. "Don't flatter yourself, honey, I'd rather you didn't talk _anyway_."

"Hey, I suggest you quit being rude to me," he replied briskly, reaching for the remote and clicking the tv off before finally managing to look her in the eye. He forced himself to stare her down, he would _not_look away this time. Since when did a big boy like him allow himself to be bullied by a girl? "I went to see Viper today."

Cassidy blinked, her arrogant demeanour temporarily vanishing, being replaced with a bit of a concerned expression and a thudding heart. "What?"

"Mm. Went and told him about that incident in the cafeteria before. Ya know, when you threw your drink over me and caused a scene in front of everyone for...what was it? No reason at all?" He smirked the slightest bit, clasping his hands behind his head. "Boy, was Viper pissed when he heard about _that _little shenanigan! I'd prepare yourself for the worst if I were you, _blondie_, he told me he's thinking up an 'appropriate' punishment for you- and he sounded pretty grave when he said it. Gee, I wonder if you're gonna get expelled? And so soon...wouldn't that just suck?"

Cassidy's heart sank. Two days. Two days she'd been here and she was already in trouble with the Drill Sargent. If she got kicked out, she'd only have herself to blame. She'd have wrecked it for herself. Her _last chance_. "You snitch!" she blurted out angrily, a look of worry changing to an indignant scowl. "And to think, I was going to apologize to you at some point! Why would you rat out your own partner? Just because I got a little mad? You were pestering and following me, why couldn't you have just left me be? It's _your_ fault, _you_ should be-"

"Cool it, blondie! I'm messin' with ya."

She blinked, stopping dead in her tracks and staring at him dumbfoundedly."Sorry?"

"I was bluffing. Didn't go to Viper. I just wanted to see what you'd do if I had."

With her mouth slightly agape, she gave a knowing nod and attempted to look nonchalant again, secretly embarrassed for loosing her cool like that in front of him. And also, suddenly very grateful. "No duh. I knew that- I was playing along."

He smirked. "Course ya were."

Cassidy glanced away, pursing her lips into a tight line, almost the smallest smile, but not quite. "Well...I guess you'll be expecting me to thank you for not snitching on me, won't you?" she muttered after a slightly awkward pause.

"I think, if anything, 'sorry' is more in order than a thank you," Butch replied resignedly. "But you don't seem like the apologizing type so that's probably right outta the question."

"Yeah, it is," she said. She let her eyelids drop for a moment, heaving a sigh. Here went nothing. "But, I guess I could say I'm...slightly remorseful for my actions."

Butch looked over at her, surprised that she hadn't bitten his head off yet. Was that...an apology? "Yeah? Well...in that case," he began hesitantly. "I guess I could say I accept your...spoken expression of remorse."

"Right. Guess I could say I appreciate that."

"Good... so uh, we're okay?"

She smirked. "For now."


	5. Chapter 5

The morning sun was shining brightly in a cloudless sky above training quarters. Viper could only be grateful that it was such a clear, warm day- since he was going to be out on the training grounds for the duration of the morning and afternoon. He had a long day ahead, and so did a large majority of trainee's.

The burly, purple-haired man's eyes scanned down the list of names on a metal clipboard he was holding to check who was next due for their first training session. His eyes rested on the two names under the previous trainees- Cassidy and Butch. Viper racked his brains, mentally going through each of the various pairings he'd recently met.

Ah. That was right- Cassidy was the blonde girl with the big ego, and Butch was the green-haired young man with the...voice. It would certainly be interesting to see how those two had been getting along.

Today, official training started. It was a rather hectic day, especially for the poor Drill Sargent who had to deal with countless trainee's, not to mention standing up _all_ day and watching pairing after pairing take on the assault course. Still, this was just the _beginning _of training.

At least five minutes later, with late being the operative word, Viper glanced to his right to spot Cassidy and Butch approaching; Cassidy striding and looking ready to face the beginning of her training, and Butch lagging behind a little with his hands in his pockets.

Viper gave them both a quick nod once they stood beside him. "Good morning, you two. How have you been getting along?" he asked briskly, eyes flicking up from his clipboard to them after he placed a tick next to their names.

"We've been getting along just _perfectly_, sir. No problems at all," Cassidy announced breezily, before her partner could say anything. She glanced at him. "Right, Butch?"

Butch's mouth hung open for a second, as if he was debating whether he should speak up and tell Viper how displeased he really was with the way this partnership was turning out. Surely if he explained about how difficult and obnoxious Cassidy was being, something could be done about it? But the hard, icy stare directed at him by her was enough to make him comply and nod his head obediently. "Yeah."

"Pussy."

Butch frowned at the hushed insult that left her lips. He just couldn't _win_ with this girl. Unfortunately she'd muttered it far too quietly for Viper to hear.

"Good good," Viper said briskly as he led them over to the beginning of the obstacle course. Looking ahead, it looked pretty lengthy; with various obstacles- reminiscent of a military assault course. "Now, today you will be assessed on agility, speed and endurance. All three of those qualities are going to be essential not only in training, but for when, and if, you become field agents. This assault course is used to increase physical fitness, practice team work, and to demonstrate techniques that can be used for crossing any rough terrain- which will be much later on in training. You'll be given a time limit of ten minutes to complete the course; if you exceed that limit, you'll go back and do it again."

The two young adults simply nodded.

"So, without further ado, if you'd both like to get ready, you can begin as soon as I blow my whistle. And remember- this is about team work. Help each other out if necessary," he advised, shaking his head as he remembered a couple of the other extremely competitive duo's who had seen it as a 'race' rather than basic training.

Butch and Cassidy both got into a ready stance just behind the white line painted on the ground at the beginning of the assault course. Cassidy was clearly planning on getting ahead; judging by the determined frown on her face and the impatient little twitches her body was making. The only thing her brain was focused on right now was getting to the end of this course before him. She wanted to show off her natural agility, and make him feel like a loser. Although admittedly, by the looks of Butch, he was pretty fit too.

Viper cleared his throat, bringing his whistle to his lips. "Alright. On your marks, get set..."

The moment the whistle sounded, both Cassidy and Butch took off. They were head to head as they sprinted along the first part of the track, until the first obstacle came up and Butch managed to leap over and get ahead for a minute or so by using all of his stamina at once.

Apparently Cassidy wasn't the only competitive one around.

She struggled to vault over the higher obstacles and had to hurriedly clamber over instead, mentally cursing at herself for letting him get ahead of her. But the moment the first few sturdy wooden structures were out of the way, she began to sprint again. She soon caught up to her partner, who's speed was decreasing rapidly.

Cassidy smirked, choosing to slow her pace and jog alongside him instead of rocketing off ahead straight away. "What's the matter? You're not tired _already_?"

Butch huffed and shook his head determinedly. "No...just getting- a little short- on breath..." he retorted.

Cassidy frowned. "Too bad. I'm not having any team-mate of _mine _lagging. Come on, _slacker._ Put some effort in!" she commanded, scoffing before her jog changed back into a sprint and she shot off ahead, smirking to herself.

Butch mustered up all the energy he had left in an attempt to catch up with her, but it wasn't much use. _She_ appeared to have endless bursts of stamina, whereas _he _was now too exhausted to even jog. After reluctantly struggling over another obstacle, he stopped in his tracks to catch his breath, leaning over slightly and clutching his aching side. At this point, he didn't care if he failed and had to do it all over again- better than having a heart attack.

It was only a few seconds before he heard a shrill screech of, "What are you_ doing_?" from up ahead. He glanced up wearily to see his scowling partner storming back over. No surprises there.

"I told you to put some effort in, that doesn't mean _stop_!" she yelled in his face, giving him the most contorted look of anger and disgust when he shook his head feebly. "_Move_!"

"_Give_ me a minute, will ya?" he panted frustratedly, rolling his eyes in a mixture of overall exhaustion and annoyance. Who did she think she was?

Cassidy didn't notice his insolent expression, fortunately, since he was facing the ground. She crossed her arms and scowled at him, shaking her head. "When we make it to agents, and we're running from the cops, you won't _have_ a minute to catch your breath."

"I know- but that's-"

"Seven minutes left!" Vipers voice boomed from in the distance.

Cassidy jumped at the call from the drill sergeant, taking one last irritated glimpse at her partner. "Screw you," she grumbled with a snarl, before turning on her heel and once more dashing off without him. He could fail and re-do the course as many times as he liked, for all she cared. No way was she going to wait on a slowpoke.

She had no problems, crawling through nets, clambering over blockades, ascending over frames, and vaulting over several bigger obstacles- which seemed to get easier and easier once she found a better technique. It was around four more minutes before she reached the last remaining obstacle, sprinting up to it and then leaping over, whilst using only one hand to assist her. She stumbled a little upon her landing, but she'd done it. She'd completed the course- and beaten Butch with _much_ less effort than she'd originally assumed she would have needed.

Mission accomplished.

She smirked satisfactorily to herself as she sauntered across the white finish line and plunked herself down on a nearby bench, sighing with exhaustion. That had been easier than she'd thought; sure, it required plenty of determination, but she'd pretty much soared through the thing. Butch on the other hand, could still be seen up ahead, struggling. Cassidy snorted to herself and shook her head as she watched him with slight amusement. Ridiculous.

A few more minutes passed, but Butch finally clambered over the finish line and reached his unimpressed partner; panting, red in the face, and sweating. This was the first time Cassidy could honestly say she didn't find him so very attractive. She simply rolled her violet eyes as he collapsed next to her on the bench.

"Phew!" he puffed, running a gloved hand through his damp hair. "I need to work out more often."

"Oh, you think?" Cassidy shot back sarcastically. "That was hopeless. What a wimp."

"...Shut up."

"All you're going to do is slow me down and make me fail."

Butch exhaled exaggeratedly, lolling his head back. She was being a complete brat, again, but he was too beat to argue this time. "Okay, fine. Sorry for 'slowing you down'. Hey, it's not like I forced you to lag behind just to yell at me. Seems more like you slowed yourself down."

"Who are _you _to criticism me? You're nothing but a useless, pathetic lump with the lung capacity of a child. That's_ it_ now; I'm going to ask Viper to give me a new partner- we're obviously not compatible in terms of fitness. Or anything else, for that matter," she snapped, jutting her head in the direction of the Drill Sargent, who was approaching the duo in his own time, jotting something down on a form attached to his clipboard. Cassidy got to her feet and stalked over to the man, crossing her arms and staring up at him indignantly. "Sir, would you _please_ do something about _him_? His physical fitness is despicable. I'm requesting a new partner, here and now."

"Stop being so dramatic."

Viper ignored the two of them and shook his head, jotting down a few last notes on the form as Cassidy impatiently followed him to the bench where Butch was sitting.

"No no, you both completed the course in under ten minutes, therefore you have both passed your physical assessment. Congratulations."

Cassidy's jaw hit the floor, while Butch glanced at Viper with a look of disbelief. "...What? I passed?"

"Hm. But only _just_," Viper replied, cocking an eyebrow at the young man as if in slight reprimandation for his lack of endurance.

"Are you kidding me?" Cassidy snapped. It didn't seem fair; she'd put all her effort and determination into completing the course as quickly and faultlessly as possible, while _he_ lagged behind and put absolutely _nothing_ into it. Yet they _both_ passed? "But he didn't even try! Make him do it again!"

"Shut up."

"That won't be necessary. He completed it with a minute to spare, which is still a pass. You are both free to go now. And don't forget- group classes begin tomorrow," Viper reminded them, before he gave them a dismissive nod and turned, heading back to the start of the assault course to watch yet another team take it on.

Cassidy snorted as she watched the man walk away. "You know, if _I _was the drill Sargent, I'd have you go over that assault course 'til you couldn't stand."

"Yeah, well, you're _not_ the drill Sargent," Butch replied, sighing as he stood up from the bench. He wavered for a moment as he glanced over at her. She was just standing there with her arms crossed, not looking at him. "You uh, coming?"

"I don't have to be with you all the time, raspy. We went over this yesterday?"

He sighed at her cold tone of voice, shrugging resignedly. "Suit yourself," he replied gruffly, standing around for a few more seconds to see if she'd reply. "...See ya." He then turned and walked off without giving her another glance.

It wasn't that he particularly even _wanted_ to hang out with this stuck-up girl; he was simply trying to make an acquaintance out of her, instead of an enemy. There was no way he was going to tolerate the constant insults and sneering if they made it to agents- he'd be spending every single _day_ with her. A nightmare.

Still, it wasn't as if he wasn't _used _to people being hostile towards him. It had happened all through his childhood. At least Cassidy was just _one_ person. And her abuse was generally only verbal. It wasn't_that_ bad, or anything he hadn't had to put up with before. He could handle it.

For the moment.

After all that hard work, and attitude from Cassidy, he was in need of a cigarette. He decided to do that before taking a much-needed shower in the changing rooms.

Training quarters was pretty huge; so there were plenty of places he could sneak to for a quick smoke. He certainly wasn't taking any chances getting in trouble with one of his superiors like Viper; so he went in search of a quiet spot, eventually coming across a smaller part of the building which seemed desolate, and sneaking behind there.

_Finally, _he thought to himself as he leaned against the wall of the building, taking his pack of cigarettes out of his pants pocket and extracting one. _Peace and quiet. _It took a few flicks of his cheap lighter before it worked and lit the end of the cigarette. He took a long drag before blowing the grey fumes out. Ah, that was good.

Only a couple of minutes into his peace and quiet, Butch heard another pair of footsteps approaching. He glanced to his left with a look of annoyance and saw another male trainee come around the corner. This boy had chin length lavender-blue hair and a red variation of the trainee uniform on. When the blue-haired boy saw he wasn't alone, he hesitated suddenly, as if he was awkwardly about to turn around and leave again. But then he leaned against the wall too.

Butch didn't say anything to the other male and went back to smoking his cigarette; although acknowledging each other was soon unavoidable as the two of them accidentally looked across at each other at the same time and made eye contact.

The boy bobbed his head casually. Butch nodded back.

"You smoke?" he asked, holding out the pack to the other boy.

The other boy adamantly shook his head. "Um, no. No thank you," he replied politely.

A long silence ensued, until the lavender-haired young man glanced back at Butch hesitantly and spoke up again. "I'm James, by the way."

"Butch."

"A pleasure to meet you, Butch," James chirped, extending a gloved hand. Butch raised one teal-coloured eyebrow. It was certainly a little odd, seeing a young man like himself with such manners. Nonetheless, a nice change from being judged or snapped at. He hadn't even made fun of his voice yet.

Butch casually reached out with his free hand and gave James's a quick shake. "Likewise," he replied, taking another few puffs on his cigarette. "What'cha doin' behind here?"

James shrugged. "Oh...just...you know, being alone. Well." He hesitated and scratched the back of his neck. "Actually...I'm hiding. So that I don't have to do the assault course."

"Ahh. I just got done with that. Heh, it was _way _too easy," Butch lied- albeit very believably. "Finished the whole course in around a minute."

James fell for it unhesitatingly, eyebrows raising in awe. "Impressive. I doubt I'd be able to; besides, it's not really my thing. I'm just going to stay around here for a while and skip it. Although, my partner's probably going to go berserk at me. She's a bit...hostile."

"Heh, you too, huh?" Butch said with amusement, earning a curious glance from his new found acquaintance. "I've got the most stuck-up little bitch as my partner. Y'know, I can't even speak without her snapping at me. I don't know what to _do_."

"I'm in a similar situation. My partner's being all cold towards me. She makes it seem like I'm always getting on her nerves, like it's _my_ fault we're stuck as partners, you know? I don't get it."

Butch rolled his eyes. "Women, eh?"

The two young men chuckled awkwardly, cueing another awkward pause.

"So, um...what brought you to Team Rocket?"

"Uh...just...just circumstances, I guess," Butch replied with an aloof shrug. It was probably best not to go into much detail about the lonely, troublesome life he'd been leading up until recently. He'd had no permanent home, no friends or family, no job. No luck, really. He'd never felt like he 'belonged' somewhere, due to the fact that there had never been anyone to make him feel it. Joining Team Rocket was a last resort; something that could potentially allow him to make something of himself. Maybe not for the right reasons, but who cared?

"I'm just... no good for anything else," the green-haired young man said decidedly. "Got no talent, no brains, no money. Nothin'. So I thought I'd try my hand at being a criminal. And you?"

James sighed. Such a _simple _reason. If only he could say the same for _himself_. He chose not to bore Butch with stories of his life as a poor little rich boy, with controlling snobs for parents and a psychotic brat who was pretty much infatuated with him in the creepiest way possible, making his childhood a misery.

"No reason, really. It just seemed like it'd be a fun job."

Butch nodded, although he doubted that was the _complete_ truth. Nobody signed up to a crime syndicate for 'fun'. "Yeah. I'm sure it'll be a hoot. Anyway," he said, pushing the last stub of his cigarette on the wall to put it out. "I'll see ya round, pal. I really gotta go take a shower."

James nodded, smiling. "Alright, it was nice meeting you."

Butch shot him a grin as he turned to leave. "Same here. Later, Jim!"

* * *

**Didn't get a chance to edit this one thoroughly since a friend demanded I edit/post within a most unreasonable time limit. :|**


End file.
